Banga wins Lithuania's baby race

A nine-month-old tot by the name of Banga has triumphed in Lithuania's annual baby race.

The yearly competition pits the fastest crawlers in the land against each other in a 5-metre dash. 25 babies lined up for this month's clash, with parents shaking keys and toys as bait at the finishing line.

Banga Salalauske streaked away, notching up her victory in just eleven seconds. Her delighted parents admitted they were not entirely surprised by the result.

""We expected her to win," her father commented, "because she's very lively and crawls very fast."

The annual event is staged to help popularise International Child Protection Day.